GOD’S WORD FOR JULY 15 ~ ~ Mark 16:15 ~ ~ “And He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature.”

Continuing with excerpts from “The Pleasures of God” by John Piper

Prayer is the walkie-talkie n the battlefield of the world. It calls on God for courage (Ephesians 6:19).

It calls in for troop deployment and target location (Acts 13:1-3).

It calls for protection and air cover (Matthew 6:13, Luke 21:36)

It calls in for firepower to blast open a way for the Word (Colossians 4:3).

It calls in for the miracle of healing for the wounded soldiers (James 5:16, Philippians 4:6)

It calls in for needed reinforcements (Matthew 9:38).

This is the place of prayer—-on the battlefield of the world. It is a wartime walkie-talkie for spiritual warfare, not a domestic intercom to increase the comforts of the saints (Christians).

One of the reasons it malfunctions in the hands of so many Christian soldiers is that they have gone AWOL.

Almighty God has spoken. If he is God, it is sure that his Word will accomplish all his purpose. God’s truth MUST win the spiritual war of the ages. But 2 Thessalonians 3:1 says, “Pray that the Word will triumph!” I take this to mean that God will indeed cause his Word to be glorified. But he does not intend to win without prayer.

God will be duly glorified when the knowledge of his glory fills the earth like the waters cover the sea (Habakkuk 2:14). And the earth will be filled with the knowledge of his glory when the Word of the Lord triumphs among all the peoples of the earth.

The Word will triumph through mighty, prevailing prayer. Therefore the intensity of God’s pleasure in prayer is proportionate to the intensity of his passion that all his purposes be complete. If he loves his son, if he loves his sovereignty, if he loves his creation, his fame, his redeeming work, the good of his people, the ingathering of all the children of God, then he must love prayer with all his heart.

For I am more convinced that ever that this gift is no mere convenience with which we settle in more nicely to this world.

Rather, God has given us prayer because Jesus has given us a mission. God’s pleasure in the prayers of his people is proportionate to his passion for world evangelization.

We are on this earth to press back the forces of darkness, and we are given access to headquarters by prayer in order to advance this cause. When we try to turn it into a civilian intercom to increase our material comforts, it malfunctions, and our faith begins to falter.

(Our lives on this earth are very short. We need to be presenting the gospel to people within our reach. Every life counts, and eternity is—————forever. It’s as simple as ordering free tracts and dropping them in various spots for someone to pick up. God will make the appointment, but He wants us to take part in it in some way. Mark 16:15

And He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature.”)

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